The conventional configuration for heart pacers, and pacemakers has been that of a squat cylinder, or thick disc, with right angular corner edges and a tangentially protruding, catheter connection head. Such pacers are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,908,668 to Bolduc of Sept. 30, 1975, U.S. Pat. No. 3,918,640 to King of Nov. 11, 1975 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,924,640 to King of Dec. 9, 1975.
It has also been proposed to shape heart pacers in ellipsoid or ovaloid form as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,421,512 to Frasier of Jan. 14, 1969, U.S. Pat. No. 3,866,616 to Purdy of Feb. 18, 1975, U.S. Pat. No. 3,867,950 to Fischell of Feb. 25, 1975 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,987,799 to Purdy of Oct. 26, 1976.
A pacer having a pair of identical, dished, side walls meeting at a sharp edged, central junction is disclosed in FIG. 4 of U.S. Pat. No. 3,957,056 to Comben of May 18, 1976.
The conventional pacemakers, much in use by the medical profession, usually have catheter connection heads which protrude tangentially from circular, thick, cylindrical bodies, centrally of the periphery thereof, and which protruberances may cause infection, irritation or rejection in the skin pocket when implanted in the human body.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,598,128 to Charduck of Aug. 10. 1971 a cylindrical disc shaped pacer is disclosed in which there is a central groove in the circumferential, or peripheral, edge for releasably receiving an extra length of the catheter, and for rotating the pacer as the body grows. The socket for the prong of the catheter is within the confines of the disc and the device is structurally somewhat similar to a yo-yo.